Interesting Stories And Facts About Lord Ganesha That You Can Tell Your Kids

I grew up in the northern part of India and while we worshipped Ganesha, the Ganpati festival at this scale is what I discovered only after moving to Maharashtra. Ganesh Chaturthi is celebrated in Maharashtra with great gusto and it is one festival that is celebrated by people of all religions. Ganesha is the God who bring about harmony in all.

Today I am going to share some lesser known and some interesting facts about Ganesha, our beloved God.

**When ever we start something new , we pray to lord Ganpati for success and to remove all obstacles. He is the God of new beginnings.

**Have you ever wondered why Ganesh is truly one of the most popular Hindu Gods ? There are so many others of the same status and are well known.

Well, that isn’t because of good marketing :)! Ganesha was actually the recipient of a boon from Shiva. The boon granted him to be more revered and worshipped than even his father, and he would be the first god to be acknowledged when entering the temple.

**Did you know that Ganpati Bappa was the one who wrote the Mahabharata?

He is the scribe who wrote the ENTIRE MAHABHARATA while rishi Vyasa dictated it! There was however, a condition to it that Vyasa would not stop while reciting and that Ganesha would not stop while writing and that Ganesha would not only write it, but also understand every verse of it. It is said they took 3 years to complete it.

** Have you noticed that Ganesha has a broken tusk?

The legend goes that the feather that he was writing with broke so he broke his tusk to write the balance of the epic.

**Ganpati is an incarnation of Shiva and Vishnu according to Hindu Mythology.

**The devotees of Ganesha are also called ‘Ganapatyas’.

**Did you know that Ganesha once ate everything at a party?

Once Kuber who is the God of wealth invited Shiv and Parvati to a dinner party and they sent Ganesha instead. Now Kuber wanted to show off his wealth to everyone. When Ganesh reached he was very hungry, he ate everything including the dishes, furniture and when he was going to eat the host then Shiv came and gave him some cereals that satiated him. Kuber instantly recognised his mistakes and apologised.

**Why does Ganpati dance ?

Much like a playful child who delights his parents with playful antics the youthful Ganesha loves to entertain shiv and Parvathy by dancing for them.

**There is a wonderful story about how Ganesha won the competition with his younger brother Kartikeya. Shiva and Parvati told the kids that whoever circles the universe thrice and comes back first will win the fruit of immortality and supreme knowledge. Kartikeya set off immediately while Ganesha kept thinking. He then circled his parents thrice and told them that they were his universe. Shiva and Parvati were touched and he won the fruit.